The Portland daily press., 1887-04-18
a PIECE OF THREAD.
Wonderful Process During Which the
Cotton Becomes the Thread.
Washington start


Few people ever stop to think Of the twist
ings and turnings and the various processes
that cotton fibre goes through after it is taken
from the pod before it is wound up ON spool
and ready for the housewives needle. The
whole story is told, however, in a small
space in one of the cases in the hall in the
National Museum given up to an exhibition
of textile fabrics. This is one of the many
object lessons in the museum, which, COM
bined, are intended to tell the story of a man
as he exists on the earth. First is shown a
specimen of cotton in the pod just as 1t is
picked, without having the seeds rem owed.
Next is shown a specimen of the same cotton
after it has been ginned and the blac seeds
have been removed. The Sea Island cotton
is used for thread on account of the length
of the fibre. A sample of the sacking in
which the cotton is baled is also shown.
Then the cotton is supposed to have been
baled and shipped to the thread factory.
Here the first that IS done with the cotton IS
to subject it to the picker process, by
which the cotton from several bales is mixed
to secure uniformity. During the picker
process much waste in the form OF dust
dirt and short fbres are separated from the
good fbres by the picker. Next the picked
cotton is wound on machine, in sheets or
laps into roll. The next process, illustrat
ed by practical exhibit, is the carding by
which the sheets OF cotton are ccMbed or
run out into long parallel fibres. The cotton
is next seen drawn through trumpet
shaped: opening, which condenses it into a
single strand or ''sliver." Then eight such
slivers are run together into one, six of the
strands thus produced drawn into one, and
again six of the strands from the last draw
ing are combined into one. Then comes the
slubbing or fast "roving" process, which
consists of winding the strand and bobbin
Two strands are twisted and again wound
on a bobbin. After number Of other twist
ing and wlndings, during which the strand
is gradually reduced in size until 1t begins to
assume thread-like appearance, two strands
of this fine rowing" are run together and
twisted under considerable tension, on
bobbin that makes 1000 revolutions min
ute. Two of the cords thus produced are
then wound together on spool, and then
twisted from that to another spool. The
two-cord thread thus produced is transferred
thence to another spool, and then three
threads of two cords each are twisted togeth-
followed the process sees the cotton gradu-
ally transformed from wide band or sheet
of loose cotton to a compact thread that will
pass through the eye of needle. The six
cord thread is at last taken from bobbin
and reeled into a skein, in which form it Is
bleached or dyed. Then it is wound back
from the skein upon big spool, from which
it is supplied to little white birch spools,
from which it is wound in regular courses,
and is then ready for the market The ma
chine that regulates the last winding meas
spool. The spools are made of various sizes
to hold from 200 to $4,000 yards of thread.
The labels that decorate the end of the spool
when they are sold are last put on. They
are cut and pasted on by machinery with
great rapidity.